Stockholm a sustainably growing city The Capital of Scandinavia
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Stockholm a sustainably growing city
The Capital of Scandinavia
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Stockholm in brief
Stockholm is known for its beauty and for its proximity to water. The City of Stockholm has been working determinedly on urban environ-ment issues for a long time. In 2010 the Euro-pean Commis-sion designated Stockholm the first European Green Capital.
Chapter:
A growing city
Stockholm is a fast-growing city. Space is needed for some 200,000 new Stockholmers by 2030. Plan-ning is therefore already under way for around 30 major urban development projects and 100,000 new homes. This entails many challenges if the goal of being a long-term sustainable city is to be met.
A city for walking
The general de-velopment plan for Stockholm, entitled ‘The Walkable City’ describes how the city will grow and develop, connecting the inner and outer districts. Entire environmental districts are also emerging in Stockholm, such as Hammarby Sjöstad and Stockholm Royal Seaport, and they are inspiring city developers from around the world.
Mobility strategy
Stockholm in-vested in a met-ro system early on, and was one of the pioneers in introducing a congestion charge for road traffic in rush hours. Further measures are now needed to increase mobil-ity and reduce impact on the climate, envi-ronment and residents’ health. One of these is a special focus on the bicycle as a means of transport.
The clean city
Stockholm is primarily heat-ed by district heating, which has dramati-cally reduced carbon dioxide emissions. The combined power and heating plants are fired with climate-neutral fuels such as biofuel and household waste. Stock-holm’s goal is to be fossil-fuel free by 2050.
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The green city
Stockholm is a green city. Parks and green areas are accessible and open to everybody and act as the city’s living room, and Stockholmers spend a lot of their spare time here.
City on water
In Stockholm it is possible to swim and fish in the city centre, and the water can be drunk straight from the tap. Thanks to an ecocycle-based approach, wastewater is converted into biogas, ferti-liser and district heating.
e-Stockholm
Stockholm has a unique digital infrastructure which provides access to fixed and mobile broadband throughout the whole city. This benefits resi-dents and busi-nesses alike. The City of Stock-holm offers resi-dents more than 100 e-services in several different areas, and Kista Science City has developed into a world-leading innovation zone for wireless tech-nology.
The citizens’ Stockholm
Stockholmers have good knowledge of and are committed to environmental issues. Dialogue with the people of Stockholm is a key issue in all types of projects. When new districts are planned and built, the meth-ods for citizen participation are constantly being developed.
The Stockholm of tomorrow
Stockholm has progressed well towards its Vision 2030 of a sustainably growing world-class city, but many challenges remain. Stock-holm therefore takes part in several interna-tional collabora-tions in order to have a say, share our solu-tions and learn from others.
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questions to Sten Nordin
1 In 2010 Stockholm was the first city to be designated European Green Capital. What has that meant for the city?
I am tremendously proud of the distinction, while it also carries a great responsibility for Stockholm to be a role model for others. The city’s strategy is to share our good examples and learn from the successful accom-plishments of other cities. Our aim for Stockholm is to always be a role model, always a green capital.
2 Stockholm is a rapidly growing city. What is the greatest challenge?As the population increases, we must decrease our burden on the environment. This places tough demands
on intelligent systems for transport, energy use waste management, and more.
3 What does it entail to be a climate-smart city?Making it easy to do the right thing – it should be simple for Stockholmers to be environmentally friendly.
For this to be the case, we must use technology to create intelligent, efficient solutions. Our early initiatives indigital infrastructure is one good example of this. It has effects on the whole environment and makes it
possible for Stockholmers who use convenient e-services for City authority matters.
4 What are the Stockholmers’ views of urban environment issues?Stockholmers are very involved in environmental issues and take an active part in the
development. Eight out of ten feel the City should place even higher demands on citizens to live in an environmentally friendly way, and they want it to be easy to choose environmen-tally friendly solutions. For many, being climate-smart is a natural part of a modern urban lifestyle.
5 Stockholm is usually snowy and cold for several months of the year. What kind of heating systems do you use?We invested in district heating early on, which has led to a dramatic reduction
in greenhouse gas emissions. District heating is primarily achieved using climate-neutral fuels such as biofuel and household waste.
6 Stockholm has ambitious environmental goals and aims to be fossil-fuel free by 2050. How will
you achieve this?You need the courage to set high goals for climate work.It is important to think long-term, to plan for energy-efficientdevelopment and infrastructure, and to cooperatetowards the same goals.
7 How is Stockholm performing in international comparison?
The OECD is impressed that Stockholm successfully combines reduced CO2 emissions with economic growth and an increasing
population expansion and we are at the fore front when it comes to green buildings.
8 What’s the best thing about Stockholm?With its location between Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea,
Stockholm has a unique environment. Few cities in the world can compete with Stockholm when it comes to uniting the vibrancy of a metropolis with clean air, clear water and green spaces.
8Sten Nordin, Mayor of Stockholm and Chairman of the City Executive Board
Stockholm in brief
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01he city is built on 14 islands and the surrounding mainland, and is a link between Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. Because of its geographical loca-
tion, Stockholm has a climate of four distinct seasons, where you can swim in the sea during the summer and ski in the winter.
A fast-growing cityStockholm is growing fast. The city’s popula-tion is currently 880,000, but by the mid-2020s that is expected to rise to one million – in a wider region of three million. This places tough demands on ambitious, systematic work on the urban environment.
Cutting edge developments The City of Stockholm has been working determinedly on urban environment issues for a long time. Even back in the mid-20th century investments were initiated in efficient new solutions to create a modern city environment with a metro system, district heating and Essingeleden, a road circuit that directed traffic so that it didn’t have to go through the city.
Stockholm is Sweden’s capital and is renowned for its beauty and archi-tecture, its many green spaces and above all for its proximity to water.
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The mid-1990s saw the first biogas bus, ideas for the environmental district Hammarby Sjöstad began to emerge, and several traffic routes were decked over. In the 2000s a city-wide open fibre-optic network was built, laying the foundation for high-speed broadband. Several major infrastructure projects are currently under way. The aim is to establish an efficient physical and digital infrastructure.
Many challenges aheadStockholm’s geographical conditions and rapid growth entail many challenges if the goal of being a long-term sustainable city is to be met. We need to continue to rationalise energy use and to find transport solutions that work as the population increases. It must be easy to travel by public transport, walk, and cycle all year round. We also need to consider how we can condense the city to make room for all the new city dwellers; we need to build a close-knit city both physically and socially. We must also safeguard the city’s proximity to nature and water, qualities that make an attractive living environment for Stockholmers and visitors alike.
Chapter | 01 | Stockholm in brief
Stockholm is a fast-growing city. Space is needed for some 200,000 new Stockholmers by 2030.
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Stockholm – facts & figuresPopulation: 880,000Area: 209 km2, of which 21 km2 waterCity built on 14 islands 40% is parks and green areas
Up to 2030, 100,000 new homes will be built.
A growing city
all of the highest environmental quality.
Stockholm is growing by two busloads of people a week.
2 x
European Green Capital 2010
Stockholm’s environmental work serves as a model for many other cities around the world, and in 2010 Stockholm was recognised by the European Commission as the first European Green Capital. The distinction considered a number of areas such as local transport, green areas, waste water treatment, biodiversity and environmental management.
of travellers in rush hour use public transport.
80%
292,484
official bathing spots
cleantech companies in the Stockholm region.
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(the world’s first)
million trees
cultural reserve
national city park
nature reserves
A growingcity
Vision 2030 – a world-class StockholmOur vision aims to make Stockholm a world-class city by 2030 – a vibrant, humane, creative city where people are happy and can make their own life choices. All the City’s administrations and company boards have a remit to work towards this vision in their particular operations. This includes mapping their own environmental impact and describing how it will be reduced in a special action plan.
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A growingcity 02
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he fact that a lot of people want to live in Stockholm is basically a good thing. However, it also places tough demands on the City of Stockholm as an author-
ity to do everything we can to ensure that more housing is built and other services are estab-lished to meet the expectations and require-ments of our citizens.
Many unique projects in progress Around 30 major urban development projects are currently under way or being planned, from the completion of Hammarby Sjöstad to the development of brand new city districts such as Stockholm Royal Seaport, Hagastaden and Söderstaden. All in all we are planning for 100,000 new homes by 2030.
We will also have new transport connections like Citybanan, a new railway tunnel with two new stations to double the rail capacity through Stockholm, and Förbifart Stockholm, a new road
A lot is happening in Stockholm right now. There is a great sense of faith in the future and more and more people choose to raise a family here, or move here, from other parts of Sweden and from abroad.
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circuit that will link regional centres in the north and south of Stockholm, as well as extended regional public transport such as a new cross-tramway. We are already planning for, and devel-oping, the municipal services that will be needed in the years to come.
Our vision – a world-class cityOur vision aims to make Stockholm a world-class city by 2030 – a vibrant, humane, creative city where people live a fulfilling life and can make their own life choices. It is a vision that aims to challenge and inspire everyone who has a say in the development of the capital city of the future and the Stockholm-Mälaren region.
In the vision, Stockholm is a vibrant city environment with compact, functional developed areas. There are good communi-cations to shopping and services, workplaces and the surrounding nature. Buildings and infrastruc-ture are characterised by sustain-able energy solutions and smart environmental design, and are adapted to future climate change. The city has clean lakes and watercourses, and plenty of parks that are both beautiful and safe.
Everything we do – from planning new residential areas to developing schools and elderly care – is based on our shared vision.
Environmental Programme sets the frameworkAll parts of the City organisa-tion and all employees play an important role in the process of making the vision a reality. Achieving this requires tangible goals and continuous follow-up to ensure we are moving in the right direction.
The City’s Environmental Pro-gramme sets the framework for Stockholm’s governance and development. It formulates our overriding environmental goals.
The Environmental Programme for 2012-2015 is the eighth such programme, and it is based on the challenges of today. The starting point is that Stockholm is an attractive, growing city where people’s needs are met, in an environment characterised by long term sustainability.
Along with other political goals in the City’s budget, the environ-mental goals are broken down into clear, quantifiable interim goals for the City authority’s various activities. All the City’s committees, boards and admin-istrations work towards indica-tors that are followed up annu-ally. One important long-term goal for Stockholm is to be a fossil-fuel free city by 2050.
Chapter | 02 | A growing city
“I decided to study in Stockholm. Everyone speaks English here, and KTH is known for being one of the very best technical universities.”
Elena de Pablo Rodriguez, exchange student from Valencia, Spain, is studying Industrial Design at the Royal Institute of Technology/KTH in Stockholm.
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Around 30 major urban development projects are currently under way.
Steering documents:- Vision 2030- Stockholm City
Plan: A walkable city- Environmental
Programme 2012-2015
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“Stockholm is a dynamic, relaxed and family-friendly place to live.”
Alexey Lapitsky, engineer at Spotify, moved with his family from Amsterdam to Stockholm because of the work. Alexey originates from Russia.
A city for walking
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his is an extract from The Walkable City – Stockholm City Plan, a plan out-lining the development of Stockholm. The general plan describes four urban
development strategies which will result in a more close-knit urban environment and more attractive parks and green spaces. It focuses on the balance between making room for some 200,000 new Stockholmers by 2030, and devel-oping the city’s existing qualities.
Stockholm was founded as far back as the 13th century. Several buildings from that time re-main, alongside development from more recent centuries. In the past 150 years the city has gradually expanded outwards in circles – like annual rings of a tree – from the city centre and the traditional heart of the city, shifting from the grid streets typical of the central parts, to gar-den suburbs and the Million Programme areas of the outer districts.
An important part of the general plan is to de-velop new housing areas or brand new city
“Stockholm has fantastic qualities that take it far beyond its status as cap-ital of Sweden. Stockholm combines great expanses of water and greenery with a historic city centre and contemporary archi-tecture.”
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districts that link the inner and outer parts of the city together. Former industrial areas are be-ing replaced by vibrant new city districts like Västra Kungsholmen, Hagastaden and Söderstaden.
Stockholm has many good examples of how it is possible to grow in a sustainable way. The environmental district Hammarby Sjöstad has long been a symbol of the future Stockholm. The City’s ambitious work to upgrade and improve the energy efficiency of public sector housing from the 1960s and 70s is also generating interest. Development of the next major environmental profile area, Stockholm Royal Seaport, has just begun. Here we will see a new city district emerge, while develop-ing innovative solutions for green building and sustainable city life in partnership with trade and industry.
Vision for the city centre Stockholm city centre is under-going extensive development, to
create a more vibrant environ-ment round the clock. The effort is called Vision for the City Centre. In the vision, the city centre of 2030 is described as the central point of the walkable city. Important aspects of the vision are a more inviting waterfront, a safe and vibrant city centre, more homes, ground-level shops and attractive green areas.
Outer city initiatives Several initiatives are also be-ing carried out in the outer city districts. To make the whole of Stockholm attractive is a long-term process being carried out in dialogue with residents. Special resident dialogues have been carried out since 2008.
Since 2007, the City of Stock-holm has been running a project to develop the north-western parts of the city through Vision Järva 2030. Järva is home to a broad diversity of cultures and people from all over the world.
The work is carried out in close collaboration with trade and industry, clubs and societies, and not the least dedicated Stockhol-mers. It is a long-term invest-ment in improving the standard of living in the area and creating positive social and economic development.
Vision Söderort was launched in 2010 and aims at making the area south of the city centre even more attractive and strengthen-ing its positive qualities. Some of the focal points are improved and developed education, stronger trade and industry, as well as greater safety and security.
Since the beginning of 2012, the Hässelby-Vällingby district in the western parts of Stockholm has also worked towards a vi-sion. Greater safety and security, better education and less unem-ployment are all factors of the future vision.
Chapter | 03 | A city for walking
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Chapter | 03 | A city for walking
The first ideas for Stockholm’s biggest urban development project, Hammarby Sjöstad, were born back in 1990. The majority of the area has now been com-pleted. Once complete, the district will have 11,000 homes for over 25,000 people.
In terms of city planning, Ham-marby Sjöstad is characterised by a combination of closed neighbour-hoods of a traditional stone city and modernist architecture. However, Swedish and foreign delegations
visit the district year after year primarily for its ecocycle solution, known as the “Hammarby Model”. The model is based on a closed ecocycle where waste and energy use are minimised, and as much as possible is recycled.
Technical environmental solutions involving residentsOnce Hammarby Sjöstad is complete, its resident will them-selves produce half of the energy needed. This will be possible by harnessing the heat in the treated wastewater and the energy in the combustible waste that has been
separated at source. There are also several solar power plants that meet the need for electricity for the buildings’ common areas.
Residents also produce their own biogas. This is formed in the water treatment plant as the sludge from the wastewater undergoes a digestion process. Roughly 900 apartments currently have biogas cookers, which has led to a 20 percent reduction in power consumption. One family ‘pro-duces’ enough biogas covering their cooking needs.
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The Hammarby model – a closed ecocycle for waste and energy.
Hammarby Sjöstad – the first environmental city district
A district with 25,000 inhabitants.
A symbol of the future Stockholm.
On the Lilla Värtan strait, in the district that during the 20th cen-tury was primarily an industrial and port area, the first stage of Stockholm Royal Seaport is taking shape. Twelve thousand new homes and 35,000 workplaces are being planned, and will be combined with a modern port operation.
Here, the growing city will be united with the values that make Stockholm unique – its proxim-ity to water and nature. Thanks to innovative environmental engi-neering and creative solutions, Stockholm Royal Seaport will be an environmental profile area with high ambitions. Well-developed public transport, infrastructure for electric vehicles, energy-efficient houses and waste disposal units in every household are just some of the factors that will minimise emis-sions and environmental impact.
A power supply system, also known as a “smart grid”, is be-ing installed in houses equipped with local energy production. It includes installations of energy stores to support both customers and the supply system. The goal is that the district will be fossil-fuel free by 2030, as much as 20 years before the rest of the city.
Stockholm Royal Seaport – the next generation’s environmental district
Chapter | 03 | A city for walking
“We have become more environmentally aware and think more about simple ways we can make changes and affect our consumption.”
Over two years, the Estmark Holmberg family will be testing the energy-smart home of the future in the Active House in Stockholm Royal Seaport. They can monitor and manage their electricity consumption via smartphones and a wall-mounted panel.
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What is city quality? Urbanisation is happening all over the world, and rapidly. For the first time ever, the majority of the world’s population live in towns and cities. There are all kinds of theories and hypotheses behind why this is, from Nobel Prize Laureate Paul Krugman’s description of the big city’s economies of scale, to sociologist Richard Florida’s theses on the creative class.
Surveys show that Stockholmers associate an attractive urban environment with aspects such as proximity to entertainment and cultural activities, access to water and park environments, and to streets and pedestrianised areas.
Steering documents:- Stockholm city plan:
“A Walkable City”- Vision for the City
Centre- Vision Järva - Vision Söderort- Urban development
plans
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New city districts that connect the inner and outer parts of Stockholm.
Mobility strategy
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ver the years, the City of Stockholm has taken a number of strategic ini-tiatives that have been crucial both to mobility and to lower emission
levels. The early investment in a metro sys-tem, which was later supplemented with other rail-bound transport, laid the foundation. Eight out of ten travellers today use public transport during rush hour. The introduction of a conges-tion charge has led to less congestion in the central city and lower emissions.
Already in the mid-1990s the City initiated a long-term investment in green cars and eco-friendly fuels. All inner city buses today run on biogas or ethanol today, and the aim is for all public transport to be fossil-fuel free by 2025.
New challenges Population growth places high demands on continued investment. More and more people must start opting for walking, cycling and tra-velling by public transport. To achieve this the street environment needs to have more public
People live in cities partly to reduce their journey times to a range of activities, such as work, school, recreation and entertainment. Travelling should be about getting where you are going to without difficulty.
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transport lanes, more cycle lanes, fewer parking spaces and a safer street environment for cyclists and pedestrians.
The City’s goal is for the transport system to be sustainable in the long term with a lower impact on the climate, environment and resi-dents’ health. This will be achieved through new technology, efficient public transport, lower emissions from traffic, and various incentives to change transport behaviour. It should be easy to choose public, safe and environmentally efficient modes of transport.
Mobility strategyAt the beginning of 2013, the City of Stockholm presented a mobi-lity strategy for how Stockholm will cope with the increased need for robust and sustainable trans-port due to the rise of the popula-tion. The three areas of focus in the strategy are:
1 City planning: dense, varied urban development that redu-
ces the need to travel.
2 Infrastructure planning: major expansion of public
transport and a road network that directs heavy traffic out of the city.
3 Transport planning: optimi-sing the use of the existing
infrastructure.
Stockholm – a city for cycling all year roundA pivotal element of the mobi-lity strategy is a special focus on cycling. Stockholm has great potential to be a world-class city for cycling, where it is natural to cycle, where bicycles are viewed as natural parts of the transport system along with cars and public transport, all year round. Cy-cling is cheap, quick, reliable and environmental friendly, and a growing proportion of Stockhol-
mers’ work-related journeys are undertaken by bicycle. However, there is some congestion on the cycle path network, especially in the central city.
To further develop the cycle path network, the City of Stockholm has created a new cycling plan. The process focuses on two main areas: firstly on the infrastructure, ensuring that the cycle path net-work is cohesive, has a high level of capacity and mobility, and is safe and secure for all cyclists; and secondly on information and communication with travellers and other players such as compa-nies, schools and authorities. One important starting point is that the higher the proportion of cycle traffic, the lower the environmen-tal impact from the transport system overall and the higher the level of service/mobility.
Chapter | 04 | Mobility strategy
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Congestion charge: new technology, new opportunities
More and more people must choose walking, cycling and travelling by public transport.
Stockholm has had a congestion charge since 2007, following a trial period and a referendum in which the people of Stockholm voted for its introduction. It applies to all vehicles that drive into or out of the central city on weekdays between 06:30 and 18:30. The technical solution is based on a convenient system of fully automated stations. The congestion charge has re-duced traffic by around 20 percent, has improved mobility and journey-time reliability, and has reduced emissions. Despite an increased population and unchanged charges, traffic crossing the congestion charge cordon has not increased since 2007.
Steering documents:- Urban Mobility
Strategy for Stockholm 2030
- The Cycling Plan 2012
- Stockholm’s Parking Plan
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The clean city
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efore district heating was introduced in Stockholm in the 1950s, it was up to the property owners themselves to heat peo-ple’s homes and workplaces. The com-
mon oil or coal-fired boilers generated fumes that were emitted into the air without being treated.
When district heating was introduced, emissions of greenhouse gases fell dramatically. Since 1990, per capita emissions of carbon dioxide in Stockholm have decreased by almost 40 percent. The single largest reduction is due partly to the transition from oil firing to district heating, but also to the transition to biofuels in district heating.
Today, district heating accounts for almost 80 percent of the total heating requirement in the city of Stockholm, and the network is progres-sively being expanded so as to further increase this proportion. Energy production in Stock-holm takes place exclusively from Fortum’s combined power and heating plants. The plants are primarily fired with climate-neutral fuels such as biofuel and household waste.
In a city just 1,200 km from the Arctic Circle, there are tough demands on effective heating. Stockholm has chosen to invest in district heating and biofuels.
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From waste to heatThe Högdalen plant in southern Stockholm is one of Europe’s most modern waste sites, dealing with 700,000 tons of domestic and commercial waste a year. The waste is burnt and turned into heat-ing and electricity. When power and heating are produced together, almost 90 percent of the fuel’s energy content can be utilised. The heat that is produced equates to heating for roughly 100,000 de-tached houses for a year. Emissions to air and water are minimised us-ing sophisticated cleaning systems. Much of the combustion residue from the furnaces is used as filler.
As the Stockholm region grows, both the volume of household waste and the demand for power and heating increase. Planning
is under way to start up a new combustion furnace which would increase capacity by a further 300,000 tonnes of waste a year.
Energy efficiency in the Million ProgrammeDuring the late 1960s and the first half of the 1970s, more than a million new homes were built in Sweden, called the Million Programme. On average these buildings use twice as much en-ergy as the apartment blocks built nowadays. In addition to general apartment upgrades, the City of Stockholm is therefore also imple-menting a far-reaching programme of energy efficiency measures.
Solutions such as new heating units, extra insulation, solar panels and water-saving shower heads will reduce energy con-sumption by an average of 50 percent. There will also be better opportunities for individual house holds to separate their waste at source.
Plan for a fossil-fuel free Stockholm 2050Plan for a fossil-fuel free Stock-holm 2050 is a proposal report produced by the City of Stock-holm in early 2013. The report states that it is possible by 2050 to achieve the goal of no energy of fossil origin being used in Stock-holm (the exception being waste combustion of fossil plastics, avia-tion fuel and fuel for shipping).
Fossil-fuel free means that all fossil fuels should be replaced by a renewable fuel or a fossil-
free energy source while at the same time make the fuel usage more energy efficient. However, achieving the goal requires extremely goal-conscious effort and for decisions supporting the goal to be made by the City, the state and individual players well in advance. Moreover, financial assets must be earmarked.
The goal has been divided into clear interim targets. Emissions can be reduced through long-term planning of energy-efficient devel-opment and infrastructure. Major climate gains can be achieved by reducing energy use in the City of Stockholm’s own operations and by procuring green electricity. The use of green electricity is driving the development of environmental adaptation of energy production throughout Europe, which means the measures could have a consid-erable effect.
Chapter | 05 | The clean city
district heating80%
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Great environmental gains
Stockholm’s district heating is based on climate-neutral fuels.
The upgrading of one of the City’s real estate companies’, Stockholmshem’s, apartments in Skärholmen, southern Stockholm, offers a reduction in environmental impact corresponding to 163 times round the world by car per year!
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Steering documents:- Environmental
Programme 2012-2015- Stockholm Action Plan
for Climate and Energy 2012-2015.
- Stockholm’s Waste Management Plan 2013-2016
40% lower energy consumption
60
million litres less water consumption
53%
reduction in carbon dioxide emissions
The green city
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o develop in a sustainable way it is important to nurture the city’s many green areas and their values even though the city grows.
Stockholmers’ green living roomParks and green areas, streets, walking routes and squares are all examples of Stockholm’s public spaces – places that are accessible and open to everyone. The green environments can be seen as the city’s living room, where Stockholmers spend a lot of their spare time. People meet here, barbecue, watch theatre, take a coffee break, play ball or take their children to playgrounds.
From an international perspective, Stockholm’s green environments have a unique public char-acter. They are open to everybody, round the clock. Stockholm’s green spaces bring together people of different ages, from different parts of the city and with different social and cultural backgrounds. Supporting human encounters in
It is evident that Stock-holm is a green city. The water, the parks and the untouched nature are all key features of the city.
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the city is one way of counteract-ing segregation and isolation. As Stockholm develops, the great po-tential of the green environments to link city districts together and promote social integration will be used. New green meeting-places will also be created, with spaces for events, festivities and sponta-neous encounters.
Cultivation and participationStockholmers are very fond of their parks and natural reserves. Recent years have seen a big increase in urban farming, both in Stockholm and internationally.
Alongside the city’s popular al-lotments and public crop gar-dens, there are new spaces where Stockholmers themselves have taken the initiative to do garden-ing – growing vegetables and plants – together – in courtyards, parks and green areas. These crop
gardens become beautiful, looked after, safe and vibrant places that also offer a sense of community in the local area and clearly show ways of having a positive influ-ence on the local environment.
The value of a rich flora and faunaStockholm’s structure, with wide green and blue wedges in towards the city and a fine-meshed network of interconnected parks, nature and water areas integrated with the city’s districts, creates great condi-tions for flora and fauna unique for a large city. Surveys show that a rich flora and fauna are highly valued among Stockholmers, and many schools and societies use the city’s varied green areas as out-door classrooms.
According to the city’s envi-ronmental programme, land and water areas of particular
significance to biodiversity, will be strengthened and developed. By nurturing and developing the ecological function in the green structure, the city aims at preserv-ing its flora and fauna. Much of the city’s extensive nature areas are protected long-term in seven natural reserves, one cultural re-serve and one national city park.
The ecosystems’ servicesStockholm sees a clear trend towards more intensive precipita-tion, a rising sea level, more heat waves and a longer vegetation period. The ecosystems that help to mitigate the effects of climate change are extremely important – from old hardwood forests and wetlands to mowed lawns and green roofs. They capture and clean surface water, reduce noise, improve the city’s air, support pollination and subdue rises in temperature.
Chapter | 06 | The green city
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The Right of Public Access
The city’s parks and green areas – a living room for Stockholmers.
In Sweden all people have the right to roam private land in the countryside, camping and picking berries and mush-rooms, for example. This right is regulated by law and is called the Right of Public Access or Freedom to Roam. This right car-ries the responsibility to pay due consideration to nature and animal life, landowners and other people.
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Steering documents:- The Green
Walkable City- Stockholm’s park
programme
City on water
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ore than 10 percent of Stockholm’s surface area is water. The largest watercourses are Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea, but there are also
12 smaller lakes. Over the years, Stockholm has successfully nurtured the accessibility of the shores and has developed long, uninterrupted walks along the majority of the city’s waterfront.
Through goal-oriented water preservation efforts over a long period of time, the city can today offer unique opportunities for swimming in the central parts of the city. Stockholm has 29 official bathing spots, all of which are of the highest environmental class.
Climate-smart ecocycle Stockholmers’ water comes from Lake Mälaren and is purified into drinking water in several stages at Stockholm Vatten’s two waterworks. The water in Lake Mälaren is of a high, con-sistent quality. This lays the foundation of a simple cleaning process at the waterworks, with moderate use of chemicals. The water is of high
Stockholm’s waterfront is of great significance to the city’s character and identity. Few other cities can offer swimming and boating, fishing and ice skating in the city centre.
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quality and tastes excellent. For-eign visitors are often amazed that the water can be drunk straight from the tap.
Stockholm’s two wastewater treat-ment works receive wastewater from almost a million people and industries in Stockholm and its surrounding municipalities.
The treatment works clean the wastewater in several stages before it is released into the Baltic Sea. Stockholm Vatten places strict demands on wastewater treatment, ensuring that the water released into the Baltic is as clean as pos-sible and will not harm nature.
Stockholm Vatten’s ecocycle-based approach means that the waste products that arise in the process are dealt with and re-turned to come to good use in society. At least 97-98 percent of the organic substances, particles and phosphorus and at least 70 percent of the nitrogen is removed in the treatment process.
Wastewater into biogas…During wastewater treatment, the organic matter is separated from the water in the form of sludge. When the sludge is digested (broken down in an oxygen-free environment), biogas is formed. The biogas is used as an environmentally friendly vehicle fuel, for example.
…a nutrient-rich sludge…The sludge is rich in nutrients with a high phosphorus content and is ideal for use as an agricul-tural fertiliser.
…and district heatingBefore the wastewater is released into the inner Baltic, the heat is recovered as district heating.
Challenges of the futureStockholm’s lakes and water-courses are, however, still affected by the operations that have taken and still take place in their catch-ment areas. The environment is affected by traffic, buildings and industries, and the amount of pol-lutants and nutrients in the water is still increasing. The City therefore needs to take strong action against eutrophication and the occurrence of environmentally hazardous sub-stances in the aquatic environment.
Different methods are used to pu-rify surface water and bind phos-phorus in the bottom sediment in an eco-friendly way. Adaptation to future climate changes entails the City building to handle future high sea levels, where buildings, streets and courtyards are being designed to cope with heavy precipitation.
Chapter | 07 | City on water
official bathing spots
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Measures to reduce the flood risk in Lake Mälaren
Before the treated wastewater is released, the heat is recovered as district heating.
Stockholm is a meeting-point between the salt water of the Baltic Sea and the fresh water of Lake Mälaren. The water flows are regulated by locks at three locations. The risk of flooding in Lake Mälaren is already high, and is expected to increase as the result of an anticipated rise in sea level by around a metre in the next 100 years. This entails a risk for the access of the drink-ing water supply and the infrastructure in the Mälaren valley. To reduce the flood risk, a reconstruction of the Karl Johan locks in central Stockholm is now being planned. This will make it pos-sible to increase the drain-off capacity from Lake Mälaren from 300 cu.m./sec to 1,400 cu.m./sec.
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Steering documents:- Environmental
Programme 2012-2015
- Stockholm’s Water Programme 2006-2015
e-Stockholm
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08
ne important aspect of sustainable urban development is a well-devel-oped infrastructure for IT. Stock-holm has one of the world’s biggest
open fibre-optic networks, and access to fixed and mobile broadband throughout the whole city. This attracts knowledge-intensive companies in the service sector, IT and also clean engineer-ing. With 1.25 million kilometres of fibre, the network would stretch 30 times round the world.
Modern urban development has become in-creasingly dependent on availability, communi-cation and a well functioning social infrastruc-ture. The term Smart City is increasingly used to describe the importance of IT and the social and environmental resources needed for a city to be competitive.
Making life easier with e-servicesIT is playing an increasingly important role in our lives. A long-term focus on IT and e-services is crucial in order to continue offering high-quality service as the city rapidly grows and develops.
Stockholm has a unique digital infrastructure and is deemed one of the world’s best cities in IT and e-administration.
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It should be easy to be a Stockholmer – to have access to the information you need, when you need it, and to be able to easily choose the services that best suit your needs. The City of Stockholm therefore offers more than 100 online e-services in several different areas.
Innovative IT regionWith modern IT services, we also benefit trade and industry. With Kista Science City, the Stockholm region has become a world-leading innovation zone and an international centre for wireless technology, broadband and mobile applications. Stockholm holds the most dense concentration of researchers focus-
ing on IT in Northern Europe. There are some 9,000 companies here, and almost 1,200 of them operate in the ICT sector. Ninety per cent of the ICT companies are export companies, a very high figure compared to other industries. This clearly indicates how very important Kista Science City and the ICT sector are to the growth of the Stockholm region.
Green ITGreen IT is an umbrella term for measures aimed at reducing environmental impact with the help of IT. It is partly about using information technology to reduce environmental impact, and partly about reducing energy consumption and environmental impact within the IT sector as a whole.
Stockholm has a worldwide reputation for its environ-mental consciousness and good living environment, partly to energy-efficient buildings, environmentally efficient transport and environmentally friendly travel. As the fibre-optic network in Stockholm is open to everybody, companies and authorities too can rent and design their own networks. For instance, the county’s hospitals have been able to cut their costs for data and telecommunication by half.
Continued IT initiativesContinued successful IT initiatives are an important tool in achieving Vision 2030 of a world-class Stock-holm. In 2013, the City of Stockholm will decide on a new IT programme focusing on areas such as:
n Availability and service for citizens, enterprises and visitors
n Better opportunities for compiling and reusing information
n Training and systems development
n Collaboration with other authorities and organisations
n Innovative operational development
Chapter | 08 | e-Stockholm
There are 1,200 ICT companies in Kista Science City.
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Intelligent Community
Stockholm has one of the world’s biggest open fibre-optic networks.
In 2009, the City of Stockholm was awarded the prestigious Intelligent Community of the Year award by American think tank Intelligent Community Forum. Stockholm received the award due to its long-term vision of focusing on knowledge and innovation with a well-developed broadband system, and the long-term investments in the area of IT to increase the quality of life in the city.
Aspects that were particularly noted were the range of e-services and the long-term approach, such as the expansion of the open fibre-optic network.
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Steering documents:- E-strategy for
Stockholm- Green IT – strategy
for the City of Stockholm
The citizens’ Stockholm
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The citizens’ Stockholm 09
eople decide to live in Stockholm for different reasons. Many are attracted by the dynamic labour market and ed-ucation opportunities, others by broad
range of culture and entertainment. Stockholm offers all the qualities of a big city but is also a green city, with close access to untouched nature, parks and water. Stockholmers say that the city’s green qualities and the water are the aspects that they themselves value most highly about their city.
Committed StockholmersEvery three years a survey is conducted by the Environment and Health Administration, looking at the environment and environmental habits of Stockholmers. One clear conclusion is that in many respects, Stockholmers have good knowledge of, and are commited to environ-mental issues.
The latest survey, from 2010, shows that seven out of ten Stockholmers are interested in envi-ronmental issues. 82 per cent think it is good that
The vision for Stockholm envisages a city with tremendous attractiveness – a city that attracts people from around the world.
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the City conducts active environmental work, and 76 per cent feel the City should impose tougher demands on citizens to live in an eco-friendly way.
In the survey, Stockholmers say that whether or not they live in an eco-friendly way has some significance for the environment. Nine out of ten Stockholmers feel it is important, as individuals, to save energy.
Another survey conducted by the City shows that seven out of ten Stockholmers would consider making a green new year’s resolution. Above all they are prepared to be better at separating and recycling their waste, reduc-ing power and water consumption, travelling more by public transport and picking up litter.
Ongoing dialogue and participationThe dialogue with Stockholmers is a key issue in all kinds of projects, from early planning stages to main-tenance and development issues. The City works con-sciously with citizen dialogue to increase its knowl-edge of how areas are being used and what needs and shortcomings exist.
When new city districts are planned and built, and when the city is condensed, the methods for citizen participation are constantly being developed – from traditional consultancy meetings to social media – in order to reach more Stockholmers with different needs and demands, of different genders and ages, and with different ethnic, cultural and social backgrounds.
Chapter | 09 | The citizens’ Stockholm
The dialogue is an opportunity for the City to receive new ideas, and to anchor and refine plans and suggestions.
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We want to maintain a close dialogue with the Stockholmers.
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Steering documents:- Vision 2030- Stockholm City Plan:
A walkable city- Stockholm’s
Communication Programme 2012-2015
“It’s easy being able to deal with all kinds of matters using the City’s e-services. As a parent with young children, it made life far easier to be able to compare and choose a pre-school online. There are a lot of different establishments, but the e-services make it easy to quickly get an overview.”Katja Koivukoski, Stockholm
The Stockholm of tomorrow
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The Stockholm of tomorrow
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he City Council’s ambitions con-tinue to be high – we need to have a common approach to goals and goal orientation, and to continue focusing
on environmental initiatives. We also need to involve others, in and outside the City of Stock-holm, even more.
Stockholm takes part in several international collaborations in order to have a say, to share our solutions and learn from others.
The City of Stockholm has been a member of Eurocities since 1995, which enables us to influence work in the EU and to position Stock-holm as a model city in Europe. The City has also signed the Covenant of Mayors, whereby European cities pledge to work to reduce green-house gas emissions to a greater extent than EU decisions dictate.
Another strategic collaboration is taking place within the framework of C40 – Climate Leadership
Stockholm has progressed well towards its Vision 2030 of a sustainably growing world-class city, but many challenges remain.
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Group. C40 – Climate Leadership Group is committed to implementing meaningful and sustainable climate-related actions locally that will help address climate change globally. The focus is exchanging experiences, highlighting best practice models and being a role model for other cities that have not progressed quite as far in their work.
Alongside Paris, Chicago and Kitakyushu in Japan, the City of Stockholm participates in the OECD Green Cities Programme for green growth. The aim of the programme is to be able to better judge how urban green growth and environmental policy can help improve economic results and environmental quality, and thereby increase the cit-ies’ contribution to national growth, quality of life and competitiveness. The City of Stockholm has also decided to invite relevant players in the region as well as national authorities, to take part in the study.
The OECD is impressed in the study that Stockholm successfully combines reduced CO2 emissions with economic growth and rapid population expansion.
The investments in environmental profile districts is highlighted as an important foundation for driving in-
novations to reduce climate impact in urban environ-ments. The development of the city districts is also regarded as a fine example of how industrial land can be reclaimed and renewed.
The study’s recommendations include urging the city and the region to increase collaboration and draw clearer connections between economic growth and environmental issues.
Chapter | 10 | The Stockholm of tomorrow
Urban green growth policy contributes to better quality of life.
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Photography: Stefan Bohlin, Stefan Ek, Pawel Flato, Jens Johansson, Lennart Johansson, Yanan Li, Tommy Lindberg, André de Loisted, Peter Sellgren, Shutterstock, Mikael Sjöberg, SBR – Stockholm Visitors Board, Svartpunkt AB, Erik G Svensson, Nicho Södling, Henrik Trygg, Jeppe Wikström. Print: Edita
10082 Stadsledningskontoret 2013-05
stockholm.se
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